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Kampala – 19/01/2018 - It was a moment of jubilations ululations and renewed hope for cancer patients living in Uganda as Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI) commissioned the Cobalt-60 radiotherapy machine installed at Mulago National Referral Hospital.

During the commissioning of the Radiotherapy machine, the Prime Minister of Uganda, Rt. Hon. Dr. Ruhakana Rugunda underscored the efforts of the Government of Uganda and partners for the restoration of radiotherapy services in Uganda. “Radiotherapy services is an important step in managing Cancer” he added.

The Cancer burden in Uganda increases on a yearly basis; the most common being Breast and Cervical cancer among women and Prostate cancer and Kaposi Sarcoma among men. Hon. Rugunda decried the impact of cancer on the productivity of individuals and the economy of the country. “Restoration of radiotherapy services not only marks out the next phase of modernization of cancer services but is also evidence of the transformation of cancer treatment in Uganda” he said.

In March 2016, the Cobalt-60 radiotherapy machine at UCI broke down hence causing a stall in radiotherapy services in Uganda. The breakdown of the equipment triggered a major crisis to which the Ministry of Health responded in two ways: i) Planned restoration of services in the short term and modernization as well as expansion of services in the country as an intermediate and long-term goal; ii) Ensuring that patients receive support from Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi at no cost to Uganda – this support saw a total of 120 patients receive treatment from the hospital out of the 400 offered.

Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng dispelled rumors about the low standard of the machine. “This machine worth €664,830 was procured with support from Government of Uganda and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is a high-level and ultra-modern machine with many capabilities compared to the previously used machine” she said.

The Director General, IAEA, Yukiya Amano noted that the restoration of cancer services in Uganda is a major call for celebration. “I have been to several countries in Africa and there are 28 countries with not a single cancer machine. Uganda is several steps ahead as there are diagnostic services available” He noted. He further added that this was a significant reason that led to IAEA supporting UCI in procurement of the radiotherapy machine as well as training human resources in cancer diagnosis and treatment.

The Government of Uganda is constructing additional modern bunkers with six chambers which will house four linear accelerator radiotherapy machines. The construction has reached a level of 90% progress and this is intended to fast track the next phase of modernization and expansion of radiotherapy services.